Equal Rights for the LGBT Community?

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Re: Equal Rights for the LGBT Community?

Postby (SWGO)Kren » Fri Jan 07, 2011 1:10 am

mrjamwin wrote:
(SWGO)Kren wrote:So...in my eye's the bible is a collection of many changed texts throughout the ages that has been diluted in many parts by the Church and other influences and is still being changed today with a lot of corruption and killings thrown into the mix.

You'll need to examples to prove this argument.

Ok...

Corruption in the Church:

http://www.churchcorruption.com/
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/ma ... atholicism

Historical findings

http://www.kencollins.com/bible-p2.htm
(Read the last paragraph about findings relating to certain teachings).
http://history-world.org/a_history_of_t ... church.htm

The above should give you information you are looking for.


Is there a shed of truth in some of the teachings I would like to say 'yes', did Jesus feed the multitude with only a few loaves of bread and two fish...well perhaps that is stretching the imagination it a little bit however again there was most likely some truth in him feeding people at one point in his life.

Well, if you believe in a god or God then you would believe that Jesus was capable of doing such a miracle.Other concerns (Teachings and the Church)

I have no doubt that people will believe in Miracles, just saying that all that was written might have had the truth stretched...just a fraction in this case....and nobody has been able to replicate this since which is a shame as it would have certainly helped with overcoming world food shortages over the years.

Some of the Gospels (non-canonical gospels) were left out of the bible, why? As far as I can gather they contained they expressed unorthodox or heretical views. Examples include the Gospel of Peter, the Gospel of Mary, and the Gospel of Judas but there are only fragments of these remaining. Some gospels could have been destroyed to cover up embarrassing facts about the origins of Christianity perhaps?

Well the councils that put together the New Testament thought so. So you answered your own question. In regards to the other gospels. Maybe you should read them for yourself and see.

My point here was there was other teachings which would give a different view on how things were however somewhere down the line they were removed hence the reason for the story being diluted, split apart, made easier to read or removed due to uncomfortable truths.

The Gospel of Mary contained some gnostic ideas and the prominent role that the gospel gives to a female, this in turn could have led to its removal by orthodox Christians. Why did Mary Magdalene disappear from the New Testament story?

She didn't. She's still in the New Testament. Look

No her name appears but the gospel is missing.

Did Jesus say you had to attend the Church? Well I thought Jesus was of Jewish Origin and according to the bible the reference to worship was along the lines of you did not need priests and Jewish worship is on a Satuday not a Sunday? So why all the focus on a attending a building called a church every Sunday to show worship?

Well the Church if you look at the actual definition means body of believers. The Church building is just that a building and a typical place for believers to worship. Very much like a synagoge. Jesus on many occasions taught in a synagoge. Also the term Christian means followers of Christ. So Jesus was Jewish, he was not a Christian. Jews acknowledge Saturday as the day of rest were as Christians Sunday. It was matter of choice given during the Dark Ages.

That was the point, he did not need a place to worship, i.e. a temple however the main forcus on this religion is a church. Again there should be no pre-set day to worship however the majority are now following a dark age practice....sooooooo long ago so clearly things are remembered from the past.

The English word translated “church” in the New Testament is based on the Greek word basically translates to “ekklesia”. If you look up the word in a Greek dictionary, one will find a definition that says something to the effect of “the called out ones”. So in other word he is calling his people to worship where they can and not in a Church. Yeah, yeah I know people go there to worship however I do see how this is the focal point for prayer/worship except that it has been built up through the eons to be a single place of worship.


Throughout the ages the Catholic Church in my opinion has been a corrupt set of power hungry people, with material wealth; Gold embossed crosses, cups. The stunning Garb that the priests, Bishops are clothed in were funded from somewhere as were the massive Stone buildings (Churches, Ministers etc). The place of worship has shown to be an accumulation of power, status and wealth. In this day and age you have sermons being preached on the TV and Internet requesting donations to fund the Church. A multi billion pound Organisation with plenty of people wanting to pay their way into Heaven through a faith that never asked for any of that.



In respect of the above Christians should be aware of the following:

"For false anointed ones and false prophets will arise and will show great signs and wonders, so as to mislead, if possible, even the elect.” (Matthew 24:24)

"Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it.” (Matthew 7:13-14)

“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. (Matthew 7:15)


Has the Church become a place where corruption and wealth has accumulated over the years to blind the very faith of Christianity and its initial teachings? I would have to say it has.

Again, I think you need some examples to prove this. If you're going to say "look at the Catholics" I won't argue with you. But I think you're over generalizing your perspective.

Anyone can obtain this information and there is a lot of evidence in the public domain. Yes Catholics do fall into this category. Over generlisation is useful rather than having to work though everything otherwise the post would be extremely long :whistling:

Don't get me started on the Crusades, the inquisition etc as these only demonstrate further the bloody past of this faith. I know other faiths have done the same but as we are discussing Christianity here are some of the darker and misleading aspects of this faith.

Wow, 1500 years later and people are still hanging on this one. Let's see the last time Christians that went on a Crusade.... I'm Googling it right now. Yep just as I thought. LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONNNNNNNNG time ago. So how does that relate to today?

Well...if we are discussing the bible and how old it is, the teaching that came out of it then this is very relevant especially as it caused wars over religion....throughout the ages...which...wait for it...is still happening today...let's see Ireland is one of those places where there is plenty of up-to-date bad-blood relating different off-shoots of the Christian faith (Catholic and Protestants).

If the people who started this faith could only see where it has gone they would no doubt be horrified.


I'm sure you're King Arthur would say the same thing about you. :eek:


I sure the early and/or Native Population of America/Cananda could say a similar thing :eek:
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Re: Equal Rights for the LGBT Community?

Postby Matt-Chicago » Fri Jan 07, 2011 3:04 am

WD I can definitely respect your faith and views on these matters. Very nice and well thought out and written responses here.

I am usually much more respectful (believe it or not) of people's beliefs but some of the comments in this thread which justified discrimination against homosexuals based on the bible being the word of god offended me a bit and so I let loose a little bit.

burzerker wrote:I'm no biblical scholar, but the laws in Deuteronomy were for a specific time period before the Jews entered Caanan not meant for modern usage. In christianity these laws were replaced with the new covenant at the time of Jesus' death. The punishments for the sins listed in those laws were never meant in a way that they would be used, it was a way of showing the severity of the sins, there are no records of any Jew being stoned for blaspheme for example. If you care to look objectively at this try to find one example of modern day Christians or Jews carrying out these sorts of things, you won't find one (unlike current day Islam where it's easy to find stonings, etc.. in the news).


True, but the laws of the old testament are often cited by Christians as the biblical justification for advocating discrimination against homosexuals. Many Christians consider it the word of God, though many understand that large parts of it are utter madness. I think it served the purposes of it's writers and propagators well in trying to shape their society and culture. I agree that old testament law is very much like certain parts of Islamic law which are still practiced today in a few places.
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Re: Equal Rights for the LGBT Community?

Postby mrjamwin » Fri Jan 07, 2011 4:54 am

Ok Kren, briefly reading some of the articles posted here's my retort. Financial corruption and sexual corruption is not the same as your statement "So...in my eye's the bible is a collection of many changed texts throughout the ages that has been diluted in many parts by the Church and other influences and is still being changed today with a lot of corruption and killings thrown into the mix. " Now I will agree that there are Churches and people who are corrupted and have used religion to their own gain but to say Christianity itself is to blame for the corruption is not valid. In regards to people being able to replicate the miracles that Jesus performed. If they were able to replicate it then it can pretty much be presumed that they're Jesus/God. The other gospels/books again the whole reason they're not in the Bible is due to the sole fact that they did reflect or coincide with the Christian belief. They were heretical and considered false doctrine. Just because they were not included does not make the Bible diluted or split apart. There are alot of uncomfortable truths in the Bible already. The other issue with those gospels is their authenticity and who wrote them. It's been speculated that they were written for the sole purpose of being divisive towards the Bible and thus another reason they were excluded.

I'm not sure you're hang up about the concept of people wanting to go to a building for worship. As I pointed out earlier people have been doing it for years. It's natural. As I stated Jesus taught in the synagogues, he taught in the Temple in Jerusalem and he taught on a mountain side. No where in the Bible does it say that people have to go to a building to worship, but human nature likes going to places where they can worship God together with other people who share the same faith. Also Christians can worship God anytime they want it isn't just a once a week thing. The many Christians I know spend personal time in prayer, reading their Bibles and then during mid week and on weekends going to a Church where they can worship with other people.

So again in regards to the crusades. They're a fine example of where man uses religion for his own gain. No where in the Bible or to be specific Jesus's teaching can you find the actions taken by those people to have justify the killings of thousands of people and to wage war. I no more subscribe to the Crusades as being a good thing as I do that Christianity was used to persecute the American Indians. Again it's man's corruption and his past actions which are not justified by the Bible. I can go and kill the President in the name of Jodie Foster and my love for her, but does that make it Jodie Fosters fault that I killed the president? (You probably won't get that reference but it's funny none the less) The wars and bloodshed that is happening in Ireland is more political then religion again using the name of Christianity and it's a power struggle between the two parties. It is no longer about Catholism vs Protestism as it is about political power.

Finally, being that I'm neither native American or Canadian I don't think what they think about me would really apply.
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Re: Equal Rights for the LGBT Community?

Postby samonuh » Fri Jan 07, 2011 1:10 pm

I'm completely against it...

1. Most religions consider homosexuality a sin.
2. It would weaken the definition and respect for the institution of marriage.
3. It would further weaken the traditional family values essential to our society.
4. It could provide a slippery slope in the legality of marriage (e.g. having multiple wives or marrying an object could be next).
5. The gay lifestyle is not something to be encouraged, as a lot of research shows it leads to a much lower life expectancy, psychological disorders, and other problems.
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Re: Equal Rights for the LGBT Community?

Postby Jango_Fred » Fri Jan 07, 2011 3:33 pm

(SWGO)MinasThirith wrote:ive noticed that this part is diffrent depending from wich bible.


This points to one of my issues with it... if it is such a great source for our society's laws, shouldn't there be one "Master version"? I have trouble following guidelines that are put forth in numerous different texts that may or may not provide different or possibly even contradictory council. "If one is to understand the great mystery, one must study all its aspects, not just the dogmatic, narrow view of the Jedi"

So,you want to give the insurance to your wife.... and your wife is this piece of blueberry pie?
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Re: Equal Rights for the LGBT Community?

Postby WD-40 » Fri Jan 07, 2011 5:32 pm

Matt-Chicago wrote:WD I can definitely respect your faith and views on these matters. Very nice and well thought out and written responses here.

Thanks Matt...It's just what I feel, and who I am. That hasn't deterred my sense of humor though. :punk:

For instance:
Jango_Fred wrote:So,you want to give the insurance to your wife.... and your wife is this piece of blueberry pie?


'pie'? I hear that word alot in-game....It's always about 'pie'.:lol:
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Re: Equal Rights for the LGBT Community?

Postby (SWGO)Kren » Fri Jan 07, 2011 8:59 pm

mrjamwin wrote:Ok Kren, briefly reading some of the articles posted here's my retort. Financial corruption and sexual corruption is not the same as your statement "So...in my eye's the bible is a collection of many changed texts throughout the ages that has been diluted in many parts by the Church and other influences and is still being changed today with a lot of corruption and killings thrown into the mix. " Now I will agree that there are Churches and people who are corrupted and have used religion to their own gain but to say Christianity itself is to blame for the corruption is not valid. In regards to people being able to replicate the miracles that Jesus performed. If they were able to replicate it then it can pretty much be presumed that they're Jesus/God. The other gospels/books again the whole reason they're not in the Bible is due to the sole fact that they did reflect or coincide with the Christian belief. They were heretical and considered false doctrine. Just because they were not included does not make the Bible diluted or split apart. There are alot of uncomfortable truths in the Bible already. The other issue with those gospels is their authenticity and who wrote them. It's been speculated that they were written for the sole purpose of being divisive towards the Bible and thus another reason they were excluded.

Corruption is corruption the difference is the method; be that for personal gain, illegal or immoral benefit. So Christanity has never influenced a priest to use his power for personal or in an immoral manner, if you believe that then perhaps all of the postings/news/documentary evidence and individuals coming forward relating to abuse scandals are all fictional?

http://www.religioustolerance.org/clergy_sex29.htm

The bible has been a collection of gospels and to say some were not included relates to certain inviduals in power not caring for such elements hence the reason I stated it has been diluted or split to become more accomodating to suit a group. Just because some were excluded does not make the content was inaccurate or meaningful now does it. If you reseach you will find how elements of the Bible have been altered/removed.


I'm not sure you're hang up about the concept of people wanting to go to a building for worship. As I pointed out earlier people have been doing it for years. It's natural. As I stated Jesus taught in the synagogues, he taught in the Temple in Jerusalem and he taught on a mountain side. No where in the Bible does it say that people have to go to a building to worship, but human nature likes going to places where they can worship God together with other people who share the same faith. Also Christians can worship God anytime they want it isn't just a once a week thing. The many Christians I know spend personal time in prayer, reading their Bibles and then during mid week and on weekends going to a Church where they can worship with other people.

The point I was making is that you don't have to attend a church to show you are a good Christian. Some people who I know do not attend on a regular basis and they are frowned upon for not supporting their Church and attending 'being a good Christian' hence the reason for stating the points I made previously.

So again in regards to the crusades. They're a fine example of where man uses religion for his own gain. No where in the Bible or to be specific Jesus's teaching can you find the actions taken by those people to have justify the killings of thousands of people and to wage war. I no more subscribe to the Crusades as being a good thing as I do that Christianity was used to persecute the American Indians. Again it's man's corruption and his past actions which are not justified by the Bible. I can go and kill the President in the name of Jodie Foster and my love for her, but does that make it Jodie Fosters fault that I killed the president? (You probably won't get that reference but it's funny none the less) The wars and bloodshed that is happening in Ireland is more political then religion again using the name of Christianity and it's a power struggle between the two parties. It is no longer about Catholism vs Protestism as it is about political power.

More political than religious in Ireland...I see you really don't know much above Ireland at all? There is more religious tension in certain parts of Ireland than you would imagine. Yes politics plays it's part and the age old Protestant/Catholic division has prevailed but irrespective of which polictical group is in power.

From a 2006 Magazine: http://archive.peacemagazine.org/v22n1p24.htm

From 2010: http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/ ... s-riots.do


Regarding the Crusades and other religious wars does relate to power and corruption however place them under one banner and it imposes the will of that faith against another which in turn causes conflict. It's like kids in a sandbox...'my religion is the better than your's and if you don't believe that there will be trouble' to put it in a simple context.

Finally, being that I'm neither native American or Canadian I don't think what they think about me would really apply.


You don't need to have lived all your life in a country to understand current and past issues.

Anway no matter what I state and vice-versa I doubt we will agree on many points but hey that's the beauty of a debate like this.
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Re: Equal Rights for the LGBT Community?

Postby burzerker » Sat Jan 08, 2011 2:30 am

Matt-Chicago wrote:WD I can definitely respect your faith and views on these matters. Very nice and well thought out and written responses here.

I am usually much more respectful (believe it or not) of people's beliefs but some of the comments in this thread which justified discrimination against homosexuals based on the bible being the word of god offended me a bit and so I let loose a little bit.

burzerker wrote:I'm no biblical scholar, but the laws in Deuteronomy were for a specific time period before the Jews entered Caanan not meant for modern usage. In christianity these laws were replaced with the new covenant at the time of Jesus' death. The punishments for the sins listed in those laws were never meant in a way that they would be used, it was a way of showing the severity of the sins, there are no records of any Jew being stoned for blaspheme for example. If you care to look objectively at this try to find one example of modern day Christians or Jews carrying out these sorts of things, you won't find one (unlike current day Islam where it's easy to find stonings, etc.. in the news).


True, but the laws of the old testament are often cited by Christians as the biblical justification for advocating discrimination against homosexuals. Many Christians consider it the word of God, though many understand that large parts of it are utter madness. I think it served the purposes of it's writers and propagators well in trying to shape their society and culture. I agree that old testament law is very much like certain parts of Islamic law which are still practiced today in a few places.


Once again we get back to descrimination by Christians.. well this "discrimination" has gone on for centuries in every religion and ethnic background. It is a line that has been drawn by all societies and the wisest men and women of history have never advocated a change in this defintion until the last few decades. Have all the scholars up until now been evil bigots that hate homosexuals?.. Nope.. We've just had this definition of marriage since the beginning of time that men marry women, not same sex. I think it's a bit nacisitic of people these days to think they feel they know better for society and can tell the rest of us un-intellectual homophobes how we should run the world to create the utopia that would ensue(in case you can't tell that's sarcasm). There is a second stage to the decision to re-define marriage that is never considered. What do we start telling our children as they grow up, especially our daughters "Are you going to marry a boy or a girl when you grow up?". This will lead to sexual confusion in a lot of children, especially girls whose sexuality is more fluid than males. I personally don't want to have my daughters to be confronted with confusing ideas like that. I don't think that Christianity as a whole is trying to oppress homosexuals. There are always a few that are going to twist the Bible to make them hate a group wrongly, but the majority of the church has the view of "hate the sin not the sinner". Even churches like the Episcopal church have allowed openly homosexual priests, are these groups all to be lumped into the bigotry lables? I think that the vast majority of Christianity is doing it's best to teach tolerance of all people, but at the same time upholding a path that keeps society strong.
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Re: Equal Rights for the LGBT Community?

Postby mrjamwin » Sat Jan 08, 2011 7:43 am

Well I'm going to say one last thing and I'm done with this debate (Good discussion with you Kren) I think we should all just embrace our inner homosexual!!! I personally feel that I am a Lesbian caught in a male body and far be it from me to want to deny my inner desires and then have people judge me for it. :whistling:
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Re: Equal Rights for the LGBT Community?

Postby (SWGO)Kren » Sat Jan 08, 2011 2:16 pm

mrjamwin wrote:Well I'm going to say one last thing and I'm done with this debate (Good discussion with you Kren) I think we should all just embrace our inner homosexual!!! I personally feel that I am a Lesbian caught in a male body and far be it from me to want to deny my inner desires and then have people judge me for it. :whistling:


Indeed....good debate Jamwin...now put on your best evening dress and the order a steak and a couple of pints of beer :lol: :lol:
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